The temperature in Scotland was a few degrees lower than the South of England, being higher up in altitude. The early morning air had a chilly bite to it despite being the height of summer. When you breathed out you could see a little cloud of fog lingering in the air.
I shivered slightly, wrapping my arms around my body tighter. I was dressed in my usual casual attire of jeans, T-shirt and hoodie with my hair tied up in a ponytail, whilst Theo was wearing a wool-tweed baker boy styled flat cap and he had on a quilted gilet over his red checked terry cloth shirt and blue denim jeans. He looked like he was going hunting! All that was missing was a beagle.
He also had a pair of Le Chameau's Vierzon jersey lined wellington boots on which made me wonder if we were going to be treading through harsh terrain? I glanced at the trainers on my feet. Those were the only shoes I brought along. If they got wet, I'm stuffed.
To my relief, Theo hopped onto a land rover that was parked not far away from the front entrance and motioned for me to jump in. I opened the passenger side door and climbed up.
"Is it far?" I asked whilst strapping on the seat belt, " The place we're going to."
"No, it's about five minutes away." He said, pressing on a button repeatedly before reversing out of the driveway.
"Oh? Why are we driving then?" I asked, stifling a yawn.
Turning my attention to outside the car window, a thin layer of frost covered the front lawn like tiny little beads of crystals, refracting rays of light. Almost every window in the castle facing us had its curtains drawn closed, everyone was still sound asleep. It was so ridiculously early; the birds weren't even awake yet.
I reminisced the warm duvet I had left behind and the white Egyptian cotton linen sheets with its big fluffy hotel styled pillows. It was so comfortable; it was like lying on the clouds.
"It's warmer in the car," Theo said without looking at me.
"How can you still be cold? You're wearing a body warmer!" I said indignantly. Was he made of tissue paper or something? What happened to being a hot-blooded rugged male werewolf that pranced around shirtless? If anyone should feel the cold, it should've been me!
"Not me, you, idiot." He threw an exasperated look in my direction.
Oh, I felt my internal dialogues hushing silent. We drove because he didn't want me to be cold? I realised. Surely not?! Since when did he start to become such a considerate person?
Then as if to further confirm my suspicions. The leather seat which I was sitting on started to heat up. I glanced down, feeling somewhat amazed.
The seat had a heating system attached? Wow, I stroked the leather, utterly amazed as I felt the heat emitting through and the seat getting warmer. I was no longer cold, I felt like smiling. Then something quickly dawned on me, "have you passed your driving test yet?" I asked.
If Theo was in the same year as me then he was probably the same age as me, which in turn made him 16 years old. Should he be driving on the roads?
"Nope," Theo answered. "But don't worry, I've been driving for years. Ever since I could walk."
I found that very hard to believe. I glanced at the profile of his face, half expecting to see his nose grow like Pinocchio. But nothing, he was basking in extreme pride and showing off with only one hand on the steering wheel.
"What if we get stopped but the police?" I started to worry. I didn't want to get arrested, there was no one to bail me out. I didn't know where my father was. And going from this many days of not seeing him then suddenly to him collecting me from a police station, he would probably kill me.
"It's fine, we're driving on private land, nobody will try to stop us." He said with an air of confidence.
This was all part of his family's estate? I looked around the vast acres of land, then as if making a point, I pointed to an area of greenfield furthest away, as far as the eye could see, "what about that area?"
Theo tilted his head towards the direction in which my fingers were aimed and narrowed his eyes for a second before nodding his head, "yeah, that belongs to us too."
Wow, how much land did his family own? I wondered; my imagination already stretched beyond its maximum capacity.
Then, as if reading my thoughts, he quickly explained, "aside from this Danish billionaire who kept buying up land in the Highlands and Her Majesty the Queen, of course, my family is one of the top landowners in Scotland."
I nodded, lost for words. He didn't seem boastful or anything. I wondered if his family was involved in the slave trade?!
Theo wasn't joking said we weren't going far because it felt like we were literally in the car for a few minutes before we were stopped outside a set of black gates in front of a field.
There was a small wooden cabin erected behind the gates. Theo got out of the car and went to chap the door.
"Coming." An old man's voice called out.
The door opened to reveal an elderly gentleman with white hair and beard, his face bore the annoyed expression of a person who had just been abruptly woken from his sleep. Though the expression quickly faded as soon as he saw Theo's face, "Master Theo, what a surprise, what can I do you for?" He asked earnestly.
"Hi Mr Mere, we're here to do some clay pigeon shooting." Theo tilted his head in my direction, which made the old man's razor-sharp eyes land on my face.
His wrinkled eyes surveying me like a hawk.
I squirmed uncomfortably in my seat, feeling a bit like a child who had done something wrong.